Melissa Etheridge joins same-sex marriage campaign in Md.

(Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty…)

October 02, 2012|By Jill Rosen | The Baltimore Sun

Rocker Melissa Etheridge became the latest celebrity to endorse gay marriage in Maryland.

The singer sent out a letter Tuesday on behalf of Marylanders for Marriage Equality, saying everyone deserves to be treated the same under the law. She also said she'd be offering campaign donors a chance to meet her backstage before an upcoming concert in Bethesda.

"Two of my dearest friends are Marylanders in a committed relationship without legal protection," she wrote. "They are not treated with the same basic equality as their next door neighbors. You can help change that in November."

The friends she's talking about are Maryland State Del. Heather Mizeur and her partner, Deborah.

Etheridge underscored her support of legalizing gay marriage last month on "Joy Behar: Say Anything!"

“I’m for gay marriage, because I’m for gay divorce,” she told Behar. “Because I don’t think people realize what a system heterosexuals have for marriage. You can marry someone and then, oops.”

She said she had to pay twice as much to end her domestic partnership to actress Tammy Lynn Michaels because of tax pitfalls for same-sex couples.

Etheridge signed her letter to Marylanders: "Choose only Love, Melissa Etheridge."